Airplane



V 1,453,830 H. COAKLEY AIRPLANE Filed Sept. 15, 1920 s Sheets-Sheet 1 Patented May 1, 1923.

UNITED STATES HENRY- GOAKLESLOF EW YORK, n.

' AIRPLANE.

Application Ifiled .September.15..1920. .Serial-.No. 4i0',465.

To-aZZ whom, itma/y concern:

Be it knownthat I, HENRY COAKLEY, .a citizen of the United States, and resident of the borough of Manhattan, .in the .city,

5 county, and. State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Airplanes, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to airplanes and my improvements .are directed .to certain arrangements of supporting elements in opposed and intersecting dihedral and reverse dihedral relationship, whereby increased structural strengthiis acquired with minilczmum weight and wherein also .a maximum degree: ofsustentation .and flying efiiciency is achieved.

One. of the-objects of my invention is to minimize head resistance such as. is produced ;b strutsusedin connectin and bracin y g z;

superposed wings, and to this end 1 cause the superposed wings themselvesto bein intersecting relation, so that the separate Wings are each an integral part ofaunified whole and iall stresses and strains, whether local .orygeneral, are distributedrthroughout theentire structure. 7

Further, the efiect of the dihedral and reverse dihedral arrangement vofthe superposedwings isto cause. said wingsto constitute balancing couples, operating about the longitudinal axis of the airplane,ithus supplyingthereto .a, large .measure of-inherent lateral stability.

My invention further comprehends .a wing structure including a series of spaced, spanwise extending .spars, which are :arranged as totheirhdepth and location to conform to the wing contour,..and which also, in the intersecting relation of the wings,

comprise theconnective elements thereof.

'Also, in certain embodiments of .my-invention, wherezstruts and 'wiresare employed, these are stream-lined andarranged in novel mannersto intercommunicatethe stresses through the structure.

Otherzfeatures and advantages of my. invention will hereinafter appear.

.In the drawings:

Figurel is a front elevation of myimproved .airplane in a simple form thereof.

Fig. 2 is a section through the chord of a wing, showing spars arranged spanwise therein.

Fig. 3 is afront elevation of anairplane wherein the connective wing -.sp,ars ane braced w th. stream-l -ne.d-wires. v

Fig. 4 1s .a. front elevation; of my improved airplane in a form wherein stream-lined struts are the bracing elements with. the con- 0 nective wing. spars.

. Fig. 5-is a frontuelevation; of the .airplane in a form wherein: both str eamelinedr struts and wires comprise bracingelements-with the connective wing spars.

.Fig. 6 is a front elevation of my improved airplane in a form thereof-wherein bracing occursat the points of Iwingintersectim, and ,alsoat intermediate points.

Fig. 7 is a front elevation of the-airplanefl in a.- rm thereofwhereinthe bracing members .are themselves-braced by. otherintersecting brace members.

Fig. 8 is a front elevation of-an.-.airplane wherein strut and Wire; braces extend zfrom 5 points intermediatethe points of wing in.- terseotion.

Fig. 9. isa front. elevation. of an airplane wherein stream-lined struts, loc-ated atthe points .ofwing intersection,;are braced. rela-. tively to other points. of wing intersection byflstream-lined wires, and

..Flgs.;l0,and 11 are respectively front. elevations .of my improved.airplane,-showing small and large multiplanes with stream. lined braces.

.The ,figures.,above noted are more -or.-less diagrammatic. in character, being. intended for the purpose of. indicating, the inventive features involved, because thestruoture thus represented. will by aidof, the. following-description be fullyapparent tothoseskilled in the art:

Desoribing first theisin ple form of myi 1- vention showniinFig-l, the numerall indicates abody portion, which maybe aboat or fuselage, and is .here shownasi proizided with wheels 2, 'for'landnse.

- Extending from. bodyl, ,at.,.opposite,sides thereof,-arethe wingslB, 3, eachat'upward' 1.0.0 angles, in dihedral form, and superposed wings .4, 4c areprovided at .opposite, downward angles respectively, in intersectingrelationwith the wings 3, 3. 'lrhewings 1,4,4 themselves. intersect. at their inner, ends; in the vertical,ilongitudinal plane-of theairplane, and allof the wings, areconnected at their points of intersection. Y i

The unified structure of j connected. wings. is rendered strong=by reason Qf fl. certain 1.10

individual wing construction (see Fig. 2) wherein a series of parallel spars 5 are arranged in spaced relation, extending spanwise of the wing, and occurring relatively to its chord, fore, aft, and in intermediate positions thereof. By this arrangement of spars, the number of ribs required in the wing construction may be materially reduced since the height of the spars, according to their chordwise position in the wing, determines the contour of the latter, and the spars import strength into the wing structureto accord it lateral or spanwise stifien- In the relative arrangement of the dihedral wings 3, 8 with the wings 41, 4c, the latter having reverse dihedral, the spars of said wings meet and are joined together by any suitable means, to provide a secure junction between said wings at their points of intersection. So that practically said spars constitute an integral, angled framework for the whole wing fabric of the machine.

This, in effect, is an essential feature of my invention, whether it be applied in the simple form of airplane shown in Fig. 1 or in more elaborate structures, such for example as are shown in the remaining figures of the drawings.

In Fig. 3 the structure of wings 6, 6, 7, 7, for instance, is amplified in strength by stream-lined wires 8; 9, 9; and 10, 10, the wire '8 extending from the vertex or intersecting points of wings 7, 7, and joining with wires 9, 9, that engage with wings 6, 6, at points intermediate the respective spans thereof; said wires 9, 9 also joining with the wires 10, 10, that extend respectively to the vertices or intersecting points of the Wings 6, 7. Also spars 11 of the wings 6, 6, extend downwardly beyond their point of mutual intersection, to constitute the landing gear frame, and these spars 11 are braced together by streamlined wires 12, and to the wings by streamlined wires 13.

In the example of Fig. 4, which provides a greater extent of wing surface, the lower, central, dihedral wings 1 1, 14:, are inter- I sected by the reverse dihedral wings 15, 15,

and in superposed relation with wings 15, 15, are the wings 16, 16; streamlined struts 17 being provided between the superposed wings and connected at the intersecting points, the connections occurring, as previously stated, in conjunction with the wing spars aforesaid.

While the number of wings employed may be varied, also the relative arrangements thereof, the essential characteristics in the integral formation of the frame construction, wherein the wing spars of oppositely angled wings meet and are united at the points of intersection or vertices which they form, comprise the general structural scheme whereby strength and rigidity are in the propelling means is suspended be tween wings by streamlined wire bracing,-

this feature also being exhibited, in varied forms, in Figs. 8, 9 and 10; while, in Fig. 11 the said wire suspension means is augmented by streamlined struts extended between the wing intersections.

Fundamentally, in the different forms of my invention illustrated, as in equivalent variations thereof, structural strength of the airplane is achieved mainly by the interconnection of the angled wings one with another, the junction of the-wing spars and the relative arrangement of said wings-as thus connected-being depended upon for the direct absorption of the main strains and stresses to which the machine is subjected in operation, and thereby the requirement for the employment of bracing struts and wires, or either, is largely diminlshed, with a consequent minimizing-of;

head resistance presented by such bracing.

Also, the greater area of wing surface, at a relatively small lift-drift ratio, provided in my improved airplane construction, assures a high degree of flying efiiciency.

With a proportionately large wing chord relatively to a large gap between the superposed wings, the drift is practically all downward, having the effect of an entirely vertical lift (or sustentation) exerted upon the wings. This latter effect only occurs with long spanwise wings at an appreciable dihedral angle relation when the wings themselves are each intersected in dihedral angle relation (or are in parts which have reverse dihedral angle relation); otherwise a large portion of the aero-dynamical force upon the wings would be lost by part of the drift upon one Wing being compounded laterally against the drift upon the other wing. Therefore my improved airplane has by simple justa-construction large lift, low resistance, improved stability, light weight, and great strength in the novel arrangements of itsembodiments.

The external bracing means, with wires and struts, is important because, due to the novel form of bracing devised by me, its

objective is achieved with the use of a minimum quantity of material, both in wires and struts. Further, this bracing, both of wires and struts, engages with the wing spars, both at the points of intersection between oppositely angled spars, and at intermediate points along some of the spars, for the purpose of dividing the stresses and thus causing a more complete distribution thereof throughout the structure.

Variations within the spirit and scope of my invention are equally comprehended by the foreclosure disclosure.

I claim y 1. An airplane having superposed supporting units, respectively angled and intersecting in dihedral and reverse dihedral relation, characterized by the central portion of a lower unit having dihedral angularity, and laterally extended portions of said units having like symmetrical angularity.'

tion of a lower unit having dihedral angularity, and laterally extended portions'of said units having like symmetrical angularity, the spars of said'units being engaged at theirpoints of intersection, to constitute an integral formation for the entire airplane.

3. An airplane having lower dihedral, and upper, reverse dihedral wings in opposed, intersecting relation, said wings each having a plurality of spars that are mutually engaged at their points of intersection, spars ofsaid dihedral wings having extensions which serve as supports for the landing ear. Signed at the borough of Manhattan, in the city, county, and'State of New York, this 7 day of September A. D. 1920.

HENRY COAKLEY; 

